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Why Grace Kelly's "Wedding of the Century" Still Blows Our Minds 61 Years Later

Grace Kelly Wedding Facts

Why Grace Kelly's "Wedding of the Century" Still Blows Our Minds 61 Years Later

June 26, 2017 by Quinn Keaney

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Nearly 2,000 journalists packed into Monaco for the wedding. Every newspaper in the world wanted their top reporters covering the "wedding of the century," but Monaco was unprepared for the onslaught of the press. A local school had been converted into a makeshift press center, equipped with new typewriters and phone booths, but reporters complained that the arrangements were sorely lacking.
They got married not once but twice. Due to Napoleonic Code and Roman Catholic church rules, Grace and Prince Rainier had to marry in both a civil ceremony on April 18 and a religious ceremony the day afterward. The first was only 15 minutes long and was conducted in the Palace Throne Room. Grace received more than 140 titles upon its completion, which then took another 25 minutes to read aloud.
Only two dozen reporters were allowed to cover the actual ceremony. Although Grace and Prince Rainier welcomed a handful into their nuptials, most were kept waiting for shreds of news outside the palace.
MGM planned the entire event. The Hollywood studio Grace worked for, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, oversaw everything from Grace's dress to the lighting inside the cathedral and later put all the footage of the event together for a movie about her wedding. One of Grace's bridesmaids later remarked, "The day, like the bride-to-be herself, was a creation brought to us through the joint production efforts of enormous willpower, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and God."
There was a dress rehearsal of the wedding days before the actual ceremony. MGM had technicians hold a dress rehearsal of the ceremony to ensure lighting and sound were up to snuff. They also had a team of the studio's best hair and makeup staff accompany Kelly on the Constitution and into Monaco afterward so that she was always camera-ready.

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